A Time for Reflection
by Cascade of Dreams
Summary: What if the Decepticons weren't the evil beings they seem to be? What if Optimus was the mastermind behind the evil on Cybertron? What if Megatron helped save the human race? What if you stopped asking these questions and read the story? Book 2 in the Spark of Primus Saga. Please R&R!
1. Prologue

**Summary: What if the Decepticons weren't the evil beings they seem to be? What if Optimus was the mastermind behind the evil on Cybertron? What if Megatron helped save the human race? What if you stopped asking these questions and read the story?**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers, except the characters you've never heard of, which would be my OC's (Stalk, Strike, Wolfstrider, etc.)**

**Author's Note: I hope you enjoy this second installment of the _Spark of Primus Saga_. I suggest you read the first book, _A Time for Courage_, before you read this one. My ideas are original, and stem from the different adaptations of _Transformers_. Please ask if you would like to use my ideas.**

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**Book 2 in the _Spark of Primus Saga_**

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**Prologue**

A figure stepped out of the shadows and into the darkened room. His red eyes were glowing with a fierce light, and it stood tall. The room was square, only large enough for six Autobots to move freely. A darkened hallway led out one direction, and on the opposite wall was a window looking onto the dark, craggy mountains of Earth. A smaller figure stepped out of a hallway, and its hand reached for the light switch.

"No," the first figure growled, "leave it off. Don't you want to embrace the darkness, Jazz? It lives within all our sparks."

"Of course, Lord Optimus," Jazz said, kneeling. His red eyes were fixed on the floor.

"So," Optimus mused, twirling a wrench in one hand, "has Mirage been spying on Megatron?"

"Yes, My Lord. He seems to be assembling an army of his Decepticons to attack us."

"How long, Jazz?" Optimus prompted.

"A few months at least."

"Good, good. Launch a counter attack on those Decepticons. In small parties only."

"But-"

"Do you question my authority?"

"No, my Lord."

"Alright." Optimus turned around and stared out onto the landscape. "Take small parties of Autobots and tear apart their force in small bits. Start with the weak, and then we'll work our way up to Megatron. The Decepticons and the human race won't stand a chance."

"So, the plan?"

Optimus spun around and his voice hardened, "Weren't you listening you pathetic excuse for a Cybertronian? Pick off the weak first and begin to work your way up," Optimus snapped the ends off of the wrench he was holding. "Then, we crush them," he clenched his fist. When he opened it, metallic dust fell out and onto the floor in front of Jazz. "Relay my instructions to the Autobots and begin the attack plan. I want them destroyed."

"Of course," Jazz bowed lower.

"You may rise, and go tell the others to prepare."

Jazz nodded, stood up, and began to back out of the room. As soon as he reached the hall he ran as fast as his legs could carry him, turning on his headlights for light. Optimus' red eyes glared after the fleeing Autobot in satisfaction.

"The Decepticons and humankind won't stand a chance," Optimus chuckled as he stepped back into the shadows. He disappeared into the darkness, but not before a pinprick of light shone on the purple Autobot symbol on his shoulder. It flashed for a second and was gone. The only thing to tell of his presence was his harshly glowing red eyes, and even those went out as he fell into a short stasis.


	2. Chapter 1

**1**

_Brrrrriiiiing!_ School was out for summer and everyone was hurrying to get away from their ten month prison. Some kids raced through the halls trying to find friends, and others mingled at their cars. Still others jammed their keys into the ignition and tried to get out as fast as they could. That's how it always is the last day of high school. The streets near the school are packed with traffic, and you can see people walking down the sidewalks instead of trying to weave their way through the streets.

As soon as the bell sounded Kiara burst from her classroom and out the door. She felt compacted by the amount of people going to the parking lot, but she was undeterred. Kiara patiently made her way through the crowd, waving at friends, and came up to her ride. Luckily, the black and gold motorcycle was right where she had left it this morning. Sometimes she had to search the entire parking lot to find the troublemaker.

Kiara threw her stuff into the sidecar and threw her leg over the seat. She felt the engine purring underneath her, and she smiled. "Took you long enough," an annoyed voice came from between the handlebars.

"I get out when I get out, Prowl," Kiara told it.

He didn't sound convinced, "I haven't moved since we parked this morning, how do you think I feel about waiting here that long?"

"You waited for me?" Kiara asked, starting forward. "That's so sweet."

"Well it's your last day of school," Prowl protested, "and now you have the whole summer ahead of you."

"A whole summer with you guys ahead of me."

Prowl was silent as they pulled into the huge line outside the school. He was a ninja-bot and good at controlling his anger, but the waiting period here threw him over the edge.

"How're things at the base?" Kiara asked as they stood still in the street outside of the school. Well, maybe not still, but jerking forward very slowly.

"Same as always," Prowl replied. "Bulkhead breaking things, Ratchet fixing them, Prime keeping everyone in line."

"Can I live there for the summer?" Kiara asked. "I don't have much else to do. I'll get an air mattress, sleeping bag, pillow, lamp, and books. It will be like a summer sleepover!"

"You'll have to take Prime up on that," Prowl said doubtfully. "Don't you have a home to go to?"

Kiara shook her head, "My brother's in Portland, and my parent's are deceased. My brother sends me a little money every month for school. Is that a yes?"

Before Prowl could reply, another voice interjected, "Kiara!" Kiara turned to look behind her to see her friend Emma hanging her head out of her nice black sports car. "Call me this summer!'

"I will!" Kiara called back as she burst into a gap in traffic.

"So," Prowl drawled, "straight to base."

Kiara chewed her lip thoughtfully, "No. First to the post office, then to base."

"Whatever you say," Prowl said, hanging a left.

Kiara parked in front of the post office and walked inside. She didn't have an official address, so all her mail was delivered to a postage box at the local post office. Now that school was over, the only place she could go was the Autobot base. She opened the box and pulled out her mail. Flipping through it, she saw some magazines, ads, bills, and a letter. She jumped with happiness when she saw _Portland, Oregon_ written on the return address. She threw the mail into Prowl's sidecar and jammed her head into her helmet.

"What gives?" Prowl asked. The mail had fallen on top of her pile of school supplies, and was sitting there precariously. Kiara reached down and jammed them into the side of the sidecar. Then, she started up her motorcycle and headed for base. "Are you okay?"

"Better than okay," she replied. "Just drive." They cruised through the streets and beside the mountains until they came to the Autobot Base. Prowl flashed his headlights three quick times in succession, and the garage door opened to let them in. Once they had parked, Kiara took her school stuff out and shoved it in a corner. Then, she grabbed the letter, and Prowl change into his bipedal form.

"What's going on?" he asked as they got into the elevator descended to the Third Floor.

"It's a letter from my brother," she replied as the gears began to move.

"You mean the one in Portland?" Prowl asked.

"The only one in Portland," Kiara smiled. "I haven't heard from him in over a month."

"Well, open it," Prowl urged as the elevator doors opened. Both of them stepped out, and Kiara slid her finger underneath the flap on the back of the envelope.

"What do you have there?" Heather stood up and walked around the couch with Bruce in tow. Those two had become a hot item in the past couple months.

"A letter from my brother," Kiara replied as she pulled out the letter. She scanned it quickly and squealed. "He's getting married!" she cried.

"What?!" Heather's mouth dropped open.

"Ya. He's marrying Penny Rusho, and invited me to come. He also said that I could bring anyone else I wanted as well." Kiara looked up, "Do you guys want to come?"

"Heck yes!" Heather fist-pumped the air and Bruce just smiled and nodded.

Optimus Prime looked over at the humans, "What is this, marriage?"

Kiara folded up the letter and stuffed it in her pocket, "It's the joining of a…male and a female in holy matrimony."

"Do you have anything like that on Cybertron?" Heather asked.

"Not technically," Optimus replied. "We Autobots may have…some feeling for each other, but we do not mate nor have sparklings such as you."

"You do have brothers and sisters, though," Bruce looked over at Stalk and Strike.

"True," Strike clipped in, "but brothers and sisters share sparks given to them from Primus."

"Interesting," Bruce mused.

"Anyway," Ratchet said, "do you want me to bridge you there?"

"Love to," Kiara replied, "but I can't. Peter knows how long it will take for me to get there."

"Road trip!" Heather cheered. "You up for it, Ironhide?"

Ironhide shrugged, "Sounds like fun."

"What about you, big guy?" Kiara tapped Prowl's leg with her knuckle. "You can take a stasis nap before we head out tomorrow."

"Let's do it," Prowl nodded. "I'll be ready tomorrow. Ratchet, want to put me through a quick diagnostic check-up?"

Ratchet patted the table, "Get up here and I'll take a look."

Heather turned around, "Jazz, ready for a little shopping trip?"

"Bring it on," Jazz headed for the elevator door, with the three humans racing behind him.

* * *

"Are we almost there?" Heather's voice came through the con-link on Kiara's helmet. They had been on the road for three days.

Kiara put her hand up to the side of her helmet and clicked hers on, "I think so. We just passed a sign that said Portland, 5 miles away."

"Oh," Heather obviously wasn't behind the wheel.

"I'll need an energon fuel-up when we get there," Prowl said.

"Same here," Ironhide chipped in.

"I can arrange that," Kiara replied. They deserved it; they had been on the road for fourteen hours a day for three days without a fuel-up.

They cruised into Portland, and Kiara was bursting with excitement. She couldn't wait to see Peter, and she hoped she remembered where he lived. The streets could be confusing in the big city.

They pulled up to a house, and a man raced out the front door. He had brown hair and gray eyes, and looked a lot like Kiara. "Peter!" she cried, throwing off her helmet and running into his embrace.

"It's so great to see you," his voice was muffled by her hair. They stepped back and examined each other. "You're riding a motorcycle?" he asked. "I hope you're safe on that thing."

"Safer than you know," Kiara smiled. "Let me introduce you to my friends. That's Heather and that's Bruce."

"Nice to meet you," Peter walked over and shook each of their hands. "I'm Peter, Kiara's brother."

"Great to meet you," Heather said.

"Kiara's told us a lot about you," Bruce smiled.

"Well," Peter beckoned them, "come in. I'll introduce you to Penny. The ceremony is tomorrow, so make yourself at home."

* * *

Tears welled up in Kiara's eyes as her brother stood up there with the woman who would become his wife. Penny was a pretty girl with red hair and brown eyes. The two seemed to truly love each other, and Kiara was so happy for them. She knew she was gaining a sister with this ceremony, and a new member of her family. She had left her phone on the speaker so that Ironhide and Prowl could listen in as well.

"You may now kiss the bride," the pastor said with finality. Peter lifted the veil from Penny's face and kissed her on the lips. The entire room stood up and clapped for their happiness and bondage.

As the two began to walk down the isle, there was a slight creak in the ceiling. Everyone fell quiet and stood completely still. It didn't come back, so the procession continued.

Suddenly, the roof was torn completely off and a huge metal face took its place. "Did you miss me?" Megatron asked, staring straight at Kiara, Heather and Bruce.

"Oh, slag," Kiara groaned, putting her phone to her ear. "Guys, we have a problem."

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**Hey guys, I hope you enjoy this new installment in the **_**Spark of Primus Saga.**_** It will get better, and the third chapter gets very interesting. Please comment and review!**


	3. Chapter 2

**If any of you have questions or comments about the series or my stories in general, please don't hesitate to ask. I'll be only too happy to answer them, unless it gives away the plot. My series is unlike all the others, so I understand you might have questions. Thanks for reading!**

**-Cascade of Dreams**

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**2**

"What the heck is that?!" Peter's eyes were as big as all of Cybertron. Almost all of the wedding guests had run off, and only Penny, Peter, Heather, Bruce, and Kiara were left.

"You again?" Heather said, taking a step forward. "Why don't you just lie down and die already?" She shook a fist at the metallic giant.

"It's not that easy, fleshling," Megatron sneered. "It takes a lot to kill a Cybertronian. More than all you fleshlings have on this whole planet."

"Prowl," Kiara hissed into her phone, "anytime now." Megatron reached his claw down towards the humans.

Suddenly, Megatron's face was gone from the opening and was replaced by Prowl's profile. Ironhide rushed past him to face Megatron, and Kiara closed her phone.

Prowl gently stepped into the church and leaned down. "Sorry, I had to place a call." He smiled at Kiara and she smiled back.

"Kiara, what is going on?" Peter was looking from the metallic giant to Kiara and back.

Prowl looked around, "Let's get you out of here." He grabbed Kiara and set her gently on the outside of the church. He did the same to Bruce and Heather.

As he reached for Penny, Peter stepped in to intercept Prowl's hand. "Don't touch her you…whatever you are!" He sounded intimidating but his legs were shaking horribly.

"Calm down," Prowl told him, "I won't hurt you." He grabbed both of them gently and set them on the outside of the church. He then stepped out himself.

Megatron was driving Ironhide back, gave him a good punch to the jaw, and the Autobot staggered back. He was just about to shoot Ironhide through the chest when a portal opened. A plasma shot came through and hit Megatron in the arm.

"The cavalry has arrived," Prowl smiled. Optimus Prime, Strike, and Bumblebee raced through the ground bridge and towards Megatron. Megatron shot at each of them, and they all dodged out of the way.

"Megatron," Optimus said commandingly, "fight me face to face. Don't sink so low as to attack our human friends."

"Apparently you don't know me very well, Prime," Megatron glared at him. "I sunk lower than that many a time on Cybertron."

"Leave my human friends out of this," Optimus unsheathed his axe, "and let's fight this out one on one."

"You call, and I will answer," Megatron sneered. He jumped, transformed, and flew off.

"Slag it," Ironhide growled. "What was that about?"

"Revenge," Optimus said simply. He turned to Prowl and the humans, "Let's head home."

The Autobots filed one by one through the ground bridge. Heather and Kiara had to lead the stunned Peter and Penny through it and into the Autobot Base. Once they were inside, Penny nearly fainted from shock, and Heather had to catch her. They led the couple to the couch and sat them down.

Peter looked around, "What is going on? Who are you?"

Optimus Prime walked over and kneeled in front of the humans. "First of all, congratulations. Kiara told me about your bonding ceremony, and all of us are happy for you." There was a collective nod from all the Autobots in the room.

"Thank you, I think," Peter still looked dazed.

"Now to your question. We are autonomous robotic organisms form the planet Cybertron. We crash-landed near Kiara, Heather and Bruce, which is how they met us. We mean you no harm, but the same can't be said of the Cybertronian who ruined your ceremony."

"Alien robots," Peter laid his head on the back of the couch.

"They're our friends," Kiara assured him.

Ratchet stepped forward and took a thorough scan of the couple. "You're in shock," he informed them. "I suggest you take deep, calming breaths until your heart rate slows down." They followed the med-bot's advice, and color began to come back to their faces.

"I think I'm alright," Penny said, sitting up. She turned to the Autobot leader, "Thank you for saving us…"

"Optimus Prime," he replied. "That's my med-bot, Ratchet. You'll get to know the rest of my Autobots by name eventually."

"Well, Optimus Prime," Peter started, "why in the world did Megatron attack us?"

"Revenge," Optimus replied simply. "A few months ago I defeated Megatron with Kiara's help. He's been seething ever since, and he decided to go after our human friends instead of facing us faceplate to faceplate." Fury was building up behind Optimus' optics.

"You beat the slag out of him you can do it again, right Optimus?" Bruce looked up the Autobot leader. Optimus stood up and silently left the room.

Jazz started to follow him, but Ratchet stood in his way. "He's in one of his rare moods," the med-bot said. "He's just upset, let him blow it off."

"That doesn't happen very often," Jazz commented.

"This was a low blow," Ratchet replied. "It's got to be hard on him. He'll be back."

Meanwhile, the new couple had decided to mingle with the Autobots. Peter came up to Kiara, who was buffing out Prowl's scratches on his legs and fueling him up with more energon. "So," he looked at the two, "this is…"

"Prowl," the black and gold Autobot leaned down to Peter's eye level. "Kiara's guardian."

"I hope you're keeping her safe," there was the slightest threat in his tone.

"If she was any safer, she wouldn't be able to do anything," Prowl assured him with a smile.

"Who wants a tour of the base?" Heather called from the elevator.

"Shot gun!" Sideswipe called, sliding into it. Penny and Peter raced towards it with Kiara on their heels.

"Hey," Penny piped up as the doors began to close, "will we be able to change out of these clothes soon?"

"We'll bridge you back when the tour is over with," Heather replied.

"Bridge?" Penn inquired, and then the doors silenced their conversation.

Ratchet smiled and shook his head as he turned back to his computer console. He could see Optimus' energy signature, but it was odd because it was not in the base. Ratchet decided to watch it closely.

* * *

Optimus cruised down the highway. Once he found a nice, secluded, rocky outcropping he transformed and ducked into it. He unsheathed his axe and looked around at the rocks rising around him.

"Come out, Megatron!" Optimus called. "I'm ready to end this once and for all, before anyone else gets hurt."

The large silver con dropped over the edge of a large boulder and landed in front of the Prime. "You call, I come." He sauntered a few feet the left. "Shall we commence?" Without another word, he lashed out with his claws. Optimus blocked them with his axe, and the battle had begun.

Starscream smiled to himself as he watched the clash of the giants. He had perched himself on a high boulder to watch the fight. Hopefully they destroyed each other. Starscream wanted to be rid of both of them, but he knew he would have to put up with one of them. He would wait to see which one would come out alive.

Suddenly, a large ground bridge opened behind the two leaders, but neither of them noticed. It was not the right color, however. Ground bridges were usually green, but this one was a deep purple color shot through with red. It had a sinister look to it, and it sent a thrill through Starscream's spark. Then, an idea popped into his head, and he smiled to himself.

Starscream stood up and calculated his angle. Then, he fired up his jets and shot towards the warring giants. The two came close, clashing each other's weapons together. Starscream slammed into them right where they clashed. He shut off his jets just as he connected with them, and took a couple steps back.

Optimus was slammed from his side and felt himself falling. He caught a glimpse of Starscream's smirking face before he was swallowed by a purple portal. He could hear Megatron cursing Starscream as he fell. Suddenly, a patch of ground rushed up to meet him.


	4. Chapter 3

**3**

"NO!" Ratchet slammed his fist against the keyboard of the base computer. "No, no, no!" His fingers flew over the keyboard, trying to fix what had gone wrong. All of the Autobots looked up in confusion as Ratchet worked himself into a frenzy.

Bumblebee, Prowl, and Ironhide had come through the space bridge not too long before. They had taken the humans back to Peter's house to spend the night, and the Autobots were now just milling around and swapping stories. Optimus had not yet returned from his excursion. Now, everyone was jolted out of their reverie by Ratchet's outburst.

Stalk stood up and came over to Ratchet. "Ratch, what's up?" She set a calming hand on Ratchet's, and he stopped moving.

He looked up at the computer screen in despair and sighed. Then, he turned to the group of concerned 'bots. "Autobots," he said with sadness in his voice, "I have terrible news. As of a few minutes ago, Optimus Prime's energy signature disappeared from our scanners. This could mean many things."

"It could mean the Decepticons…" Skidplate didn't need or want to finish his sentence.

"Not necessarily," Ratchet said. "We need conformation before we draw any conclusions. Jazz, Prowl, I'll bridge you to Prime's last coordinates. Find out what happened."

The two Autobots stood up and strode through the ground bridge. They emerged into a rocky outcropping and began to look around. Jazz scanned the ground, while Prowl climbed the rocks like a lissome cat. Jazz scanned in ever-widening circles, but to no avail as of yet. Prowl jumped gracefully from rock to rock, seeing no sign of Optimus or the Decepticons.

"Prowl," Jazz called to the ninja-bot. Prowl jumped to the ground and raced over to Jazz.

"What?" Prowl asked. He stopped dead when he saw what Jazz had found. There was a big patch of dirt that was all scuffed up. Prowl could see some footprints from Optimus, and some from Megatron. Prowl and Jazz circled the entire fight scene three times over, but the two warriors seemed to just disappear. There was no tracks leading away from the struggle, and there were no drag marks indicating the victory of either Decepticon or Autobot.

"What do you think?" Jazz asked.

"I have no idea," Prowl deduced. Jazz nodded in agreement. "There is only one thing for sure; that Optimus isn't here." Prowl felt heaviness in his spark. "Ratchet, we need a ground bridge back."

The two walked through the newly opened ground bridge with a new drag in their step. All of the Autobots were waiting in anticipation on the other side. "Well?" hope shone in Ratchet's optics.

"There was sign of a struggle between Optimus and Megatron," Prowl said. "But from their tracks I couldn't distinguish a clear winner."

"The tracks just seem to disappear," Jazz interjected.

"The Decepticons could have flown Optimus away from the struggle," Strike suggested.

"We have to assume the worst," Ratchet replied grimly. "Some one is going to have to lead us since Optimus is gone."

"I should lead. I am Optimus' consul after all," Jazz announced.

"Me, Grimlock, leader of Dinobots. Me should be leader of Autobots," Grimlock growled.

"I'll be the leader!" Sideswipe piped up. Everyone turned to him in confusion. "What? I think I'd do a good job. I've lead plenty of missions in my day."

"Let's have a vote," Ratchet suggested. "You three, stand over here. What are your individual plans for the Autobots?"

Jazz spoke first, "I say we infiltrate the Decepticon Base, try and contact Cybertron, and help recover Optimus' body so that we can put it in a place of honor. If he's alive, we need to help him."

"I say we build a space bridge to contact Cybertron, or do whatever. We'd have a lot more mobility that way, and would give us an advantage over the Decepticons," Sideswipe explained.

"Me, Grimlock, want to crush Decepticons!" Grimlock explained simply.

"Alright," Ratchet looked at the rest of the Autobots, "you've heard what they have to say. Now let's vote. All those in favor of Jazz?" The hands of Prowl, Blurr, Stalk, and Strike rose into the air. "Raise your hand if you're in favor of Sideswipe." Mirage, Arcee, Bumblebee, and Skidplate all raised their hands. "All in favor of Grimlock?" Ironhide and Bulkhead raised their hands.

"How are we going to have a leader if we don't have a majority?" Ratchet asked.

"Jazz's idea was the best," Stalk growled.

"Sideswipe's was better," Arcee told her matter-of-factly.

"Let's not quibble," Ratchet started.

"Quibble?" Skidplate said in disbelief. "This is the leader of the Autobots we're talking about!"

"I say we go our own ways!" Sideswipe roared. "Come on," he signaled for his followers to follow him into one of the various tunnels of L3. Grimlock went his own way with Bulkhead and Ironhide in tow. The trio went down a totally different tunnel from Sideswipe.

"Let's go," Jazz led his band of followers up to L2 to get away from the other two groups.

Ratchet remained in the main part of the base all alone. He shook his head, knowing that splitting up would not help their cause. They would probably still be friends, but would follow different leaders. "Oh, Prime," he sighed, turning to his computer, "we need you now more than ever."

* * *

Optimus Prime pushed himself up with his arms, but was knocked back down by a blow to his shoulders. He felt the object roll over his back and land on the ground a ways away. Once he recovered himself again, he scrambled to his feet and brandished his axe, ready to face whatever came at him. When he looked around, however, he was astonished.

The landscape around him was exactly the same as before he had gone through the ground bridge. It hadn't changed at all, and a chill crept into Optimus' energon. He lowered his axe slightly and looked around some more. Megatron laid a ways away, but made no move to get up. Optimus assumed Megatron's system was in shock, and that he had been the one to flatten Optimus.

Suddenly, a loud roar sounded overhead. Optimus looked skyward and saw a jet flying overhead. Optimus would know that jet anywhere. It was Starscream; with an odd red, white, and blue paintjob. The Decepticon spotted them, and landed nearby. He transformed and raced over to Megatron.

"Megatron!" he said in surprise. "I thought you were back at base. I didn't know you had come all the way out here. Let me help you." He didn't seem to notice Optimus, but Prime raised his axe in defense anyway.

As he knelt down to help Megatron, Megatron lashed out and grabbed Starscream by the head. He seemed to have regained his mobility. Megatron stood up, still holding Starscream's face.

"Megatron!" he screeched. "What's wrong? I haven't done anything, I swear!"

"Come on, you traitorous excuse for a melted sparkplug!" Megatron growled. "You will face the wrath of Megatron!" He began to walk away, dragging the pleading Starscream behind him. Suddenly, he stopped in mid-stride.

A large cloud of dust manifested on the horizon, and was approaching the trio very fast. A look of horror was plastered on Starscream's face. As the dust cloud came closer, Optimus could see a tank in front of it, with other vehicles following in its wake. The tank transformed as it reached Megatron, and Optimus nearly dropped his axe.

The tank in front transformed into an exact likeness of Megatron, but with streaks of color all over its body. It slid to a stop right in front of the real Megatron, and they looked each other straight in the eye.

"What are you doing to my most loyal lieutenant?" the pseudo-Megatron asked.

"What are you talking about, imposter?" Megatron hissed.

"Me!? An imposter!?" the pseudo-Megatron burst into laughter. "Now that's funny."

"Megatron, help me!" Starscream pleaded.

"Let him go," pseudo-Megatron said.

"Or what?" Megatron sneered.

"This must be an elaborate plot," Soundwave suggested.

"_You_ must be an elaborate plot," Megatron roared, "orchestrated by Optimus Prime."

"Optimus?" a slight anxiety crept into the pseudo-Megatron's voice. He seemed to notice Optimus at this moment. And something else.

Optimus looked to the other side of the desert and saw another dust cloud rushing towards them. When it reached them, three Cybertronians transformed, and this time Optimus did drop his axe.

Optimus was looking at an exact copy of himself, but with a complete black and purple paintjob. Behind him were doppelgangers of Mirage and Bumblebee, both with different paintjobs as well.

"Megatron," the pseudo-Optimus growled.

"Urgh," Megatron made a fist with his right hand. "I'm sick and tired of this. I thought I'd gotten rid of you," he turned and aimed his fusion cannon at the pseudo-Optimus. He did a quick double take when he saw another Optimus off to his left.

Megatron narrowed his optics and shot at the pseudo-Optimus. The pseudo-Optimus was shot back, and his two Autobot companions caught him as he flew backwards. To the other Optimus, Megatron threw Starscream at him. Both of them tumbled to the ground. "This is weird," Megatron transformed and flew into the sky. "I'll be back to annihilate Optimus Prime!' he roared as he disappeared.

The pseudo-Optimus picked himself up and glared at the pseudo-Megatron. "You outnumber me now, but I'll be back. And I _will_ crush you." He transformed and raced away with his Autobots in tow.

Optimus tried to push Starscream off of him, and Starscream cooperated by planting his feet under himself and pushing up as well. Once Starscream was on his feet, Optimus was able to gain his footing. The pseudo-Megatron strode up to Starscream and looked him over. "Are you alright?" he asked.

"Yeah," Starscream dusted himself off, and then realized who he had actually collided with. "Optimus!" he shrieked, ducking behind pseudo-Megatron.

"Optimus," the pseudo-Megatron growled, "I thought you ran off."

"Ran off?" Prime asked, completely confused about what was going on. His processor was racing in circles.

The pseudo-Megatron examined him. "You don't look like Optimus. Wrong paintjob and body language. You must be a clone sent by the real Optimus to catch us off guard!" The pseudo-Megatron stepped back, "Wrap him up, Blitzwing."

"Vith pleasure," Blitzwing stepped out from behind Megatron and pointed his fists at Optimus. Optimus picked up his axe, sheathed it, and got ready for a fight. Blitzwing shot out something like a grappling hook from both hands towards Optimus. Optimus stepped back, but the wire was able to wrap around his ankles and Optimus fell to the ground. The wire began snaking up his body, wrapping him tightly from his ankles to his shoulders. "Good night," Blitzwing smiled and sent a jolt of electricity down the wires. Pain washed over Optimus, and he fought it as long as he could. Finally, he couldn't stand it anymore. His systems shut down and all of Optimus' senses went dark.


End file.
